Loved this book! It was fun, creepy, and exciting! It also felt fresh and like something that I haven't read before. The sinister vibes while being in a suburban setting makes it hit home and makes it relatable as well. Overall I loved this book, and look forward to reading more from this Author.

This is the first book I've read by Melissa Albert (even though I have had The Hazel Wood on my TBR for years now), and I really enjoyed it. This book had contemporary spooky vibes with great fantasy and mystery elements that kept me on the edge of my seat the entire book! When Nora wakes up on her estranged best friend, Becca's porch, she finds out that four people have vanished without a trace the night before. Desperate to find her friend, she tries to untangle the mess of clues in front of her. But as she struggles to trust the clues Becca left behind, the local folklore of a legendary goddess woven throughout their childhoods seems to play a bigger role in everything in their lives. This book was spooky (I'm a wimp about scary books, so if I can read it, anyone can) and really dived into the darkness inside everyone and how toxic friendships change how you view the world. But even as it read like a contemporary mystery/thriller, it had interesting fantasy elements. It made me question if this was truly a fantasy or if it was just all in Nora's imagination, which is always fun in a fantasy thriller. I really enjoyed this story and would recommend it to anyone who wants to read a spooky YA contemporary fantasy.

Thank you to Flatrion Books and Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I really enjoyed this!

Short/simple summary: Several high school students and a teacher go missing on the same night. A best friend follows the clues left for her in life, her dreams, and local myths to discover the truth behind the disappearances.

This book is a cool blend of mystery, supernatural elements, and relationship dynamics. The character development is so good! The way the main character navigates her grief, guilt, and love towards her missing friend feels real. We get info throughout about their lives and friendship before the disappearances. And it’s complicated! Because they are high school kids working through loss and figuring out who they need to be for each other and themselves. The multiple POVs and flashbacks in this story lead to a satisfying slow-burn reveal. I recommend this book to YA horror fans and those who like mysteries with a supernatural twist.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Bad Ones by Melissa Albert is the first book I have read by this author. The premise of the book hooked me immediately. A small town, tragedy and mystery around every corner and missing people. But why and how were they missing and what was at the center of their disappearance. The ones who are missing seem to be 'bad people' in some way, except for one, and her best friend is determined to find out what happened to her. Nora's best friend is missing and they had a terrible fight right before she was gone. She is led back to her childhood when they became best friends, and what connected them all of those years ago. They used to play a game known as the Goddess Game, where a Goddess fought for the injustices and got revenge. The book is a great mystery and explores toxic friendships as well as diving into old myths and legends, and often times would go back and forth between time periods. However, there were areas that I felt rushed and at times I felt lost as to what was going on. There also is no real explanation as to where the 'missing bad ones' went to, and sometimes the mystery tottered between reality and fantasy. The idea of a Goddess seeking justice for wrongdoings before they happen appealed to me greatly, especially in the light of so much tragedy that is happening today. The book is definitely a mystery with SCI-FI components which help in understanding where the book will go with the plot. I suggest to anyone that will read this to go with that in mind and not expect a easy conclusion or understanding of what is happening in this small town, as the SCI-FI mystery is big in this story and will not fit any neat box of why things are happening. Thank you to #NetGalley and #FlatIronBooks for the ARC in exchange for fair and honest feedback.

Melissa Albert is an auto-read for me and phew did this book deliver. Perfectly spooky, well thought out mystery, and I’ll be thinking about this plot for some time to come. I even started listening to music I haven’t listened to since my own high school days to set the atmosphere. I will absolutely be recommending to all my horror reading friends and I can’t wait to see what’s next from this excellent writer.

Book was not what I was expecting. But I did enjoy the plot and story. Not a lot of romance which was refreshing for a ya novel. Wish there was a bit more conflict between Nora and the goddess. Felt like there was a ton of buildup and then over very quickly.. The writing style would appeal to a younger ya audience. Not sure it would appeal to the older ya /new adult genres. The main relationship
In the book focuses on two best friends Nora a Becca. That relationship does carry the story.

This book seemed all so normal—best friends, separated by an unnamed fight. But with people disappearing, a mystery lays out before the reader, who is leisurely walked through time, and the ordinary is anything but.

This book is a very slow burn. I didn’t know what was happening for a good chunk of the novel, but really enjoyed not knowing. The Bad Ones is another super fun read from this author.

My first YA horror novel and I think it’ll be my last. Although the premise was good—if felt at times clumsy or cumbersome. I was annoyed with all of the internal thoughts within the book. With that being said, I know a lot of people that will love this book and it makes for a great recommendation for YA Horror readers.

"The Bad Ones" by Melissa Albert promised a gripping tale of high school friends ensnared in a sinister childhood game. Becca's disappearance, along with others, adds a layer of mystery that had me hooked. Nora's quest to untangle the tragic history of disappearances was intriguing.

Despite the compelling premise, the novel's pacing felt cumbersome. The repetitive elements and frequent internal monologues disrupted the flow, making it hard to fully immerse myself in the narrative. The potential for an excellent read is there, but the length seemed excessive, stretching the story thin.

The concept of losing chunks of time added a fascinating dimension, echoing the urgency of Nora's quest. The struggle to solve the mysteries before time runs out creates a palpable tension.

In essence, "The Bad Ones" has the ingredients for an exceptional read. A concise revision, perhaps 100-150 pages shorter, could transform it into a gripping thriller, and I'd gladly give it another go if such an edit were made.

More YA horror, please! I do admit to taking a little longer to read this book that I would usually like, something about the opening didn't immediately grab me but after a few chapters I had settled into a rhythm. That, and I really enjoy this author's writing. I'm a huge fan of small town/suburban settings, toxic friendships, and missing people (in books!) so this really was up my street even if I wanted to shake Becca's shoulders sometimes. Also, the cover art is stunning. Will order into the store!

I was hopefully optimistic about this book because years ago when I read Albert's Hazel Woods (also as an e-ARC) I found myself somewhat intrigued by the premise and pleased by the beautiful prose but in the end this one let me down a bit. First off, I was under the impression this was a horror fantasy novel and while there are some fantasy elements (or maybe magical realism elements?) to it I would by not means call it a horror novel. Maybe a mystery/thriller at best. It was also fairly slow, not REALLY picking up speed until at least a third of the way through. And even then it was still kind of messy. The main character doesn't really figure things out herself, they more just get handed to her. I also, once again, want to point out that perhaps the adults in this novel might have considered getting our main character some therapy. If your teenage daughter's best friend goes missing and then she expresses she kind of feels responsible? You should probably try to get her into a therapist ASAP. But I digress. I feel like the only characters who we really well developed were our main character and her (missing) best friend, which left everyone else feeling...lacking. Now that's not to say it was all bad. Albert has come up with a very interesting idea, certainly unique, with some interesting themes. It sounds like it should have been right up my alley, but it just ended up being a miss for me. I also found the writing to be insanely clunky, at least compared to what I recall of her debut novel (although it has been many years, so I might be misremembering things. And this is also an ARC, so that might change in the final copy). All together the premise alone wasn't enough to save this book for me, and I can't say that I will be hand-selling it to any customers, although I certainly won't steer anyone away from it either, because while it wasn't for me other people seem to be enjoying it, and I can see how others might find more to enjoy than I did.

Content Warning: semi-toxic friendship, missing people, grooming, death of a parent, death

+ What interested me in reading this book was this line “the occult power of childhood play and artistic creation, and the razor-thin line between make-believe and belief” because as a kid in the 80’s, all we did was make-believe play but I remember also when we played with Ouija boards and wanted to find ghosts or spirits or was fascinated with ghost stories. So in many instances does this book speak to my childhood and young adult self. It reminded me of kids yelling “bloody mary”, or singing that rhyme from Freddy Kruger movies “one two, Freddy’s coming for you…” that stuff freaked me out as a kid so I wanted to see if this book would give me that same creepy feeling.

+ Four people go missing, one of them is Nora’s best friend, Becca. Becca has had a hard life with her parents dying and her being all alone except for Nora. But their friendship changes along the way and becomes a bit toxic when they start playing the goddess game. The Goddess Game is something born of an urban legend at their high school, there is a story, but people have different versions of it. I loved how Becca and Nora was so creative and created their kingdom and made more goddesses! 

+ The writing really is immersive and made me want to keep reading to find out what happened to these missing people and what happened to Nora and Becca. Also something was happening to Nora and I just needed answers. I felt like the author really captures their semi-toxic friendship though, and their emotional journeys with one another.

~ I kept reading because the writing is wonderful but it started to drag. I didn’t feel like we were getting much details about the disappearances. I also felt like the big reveal was a disappointment which is a bummer. The story kind of glosses over why three of the people disappeared and I guess I wanted more details. Then ending feels rushed. 

My Thoughts:

The book started off strong but the ending to me was rushed which is a bit disappointing. I did like all the themes in the story about grief, toxic friendship, childhood stories turning into maybe something real, and urban legends that start from a story that takes on a life of its own. I just wish it ended as strong as the beginning but I was left wanting more.

Eleanor is a high school student living in Palmdale. She grew up being best friends with Becca a girl who unfortunately lost her parents a year apart and doesn’t get along with the stepmom her dad married after her mom‘s death
. When Becca goes missing it’s on the same night that a teacher a girl name Kllo and another classmate goes missing. For people going missing in such a small town is a big deal and when Nora‘s mom tells her a classmate went missing when she too was in high school Nora wants to know more. The day after her BF goes missing she finds clues that Becca left for her to follow but win a guy named James shows up at Eleanor‘s house with undeveloped film and a note wrapped around it from Becca Nora is baffled because she didn’t think her best friend had any other friends which was a bone of contention in their relationship or at least it was until three months ago when Rebecca wanted to play a game they used to play as children and it ended in an argument something that would haunt Eleanor but as far as this guy James goes they start spending time together to find out what happened to Rebecca. When they were 10 years old older girls found them in the woods playing games as children do and when one of the girls says you should teach them the goddess game Eleanor and Becca think it is the jump rope song about the goddess but the not so nice older girl tells them a story that the girls are captivated by but in the end don’t believe but they use it to make their own game and create their own goddesses and one was a goddess of revenge so win Nora sees the note around the film that says remember the Goddess game Eleanor remembers it but has no clue as to what her friend wants her to do. Due to lack of sleep or true mystical happenings strange things become norm for Nora she has weird dreams and even weirder experiences but what does this all have to do with her friend Rebecca and Rebecca going missing it seems all the people who are missing have done something wrong to someone with the exception of Rebecca so why is she missing? This is what Eleanor tries to find out. I had high hopes for the sport and was looking so forward to reading it but some of the authors descriptors were way out of my wheelhouse such as “his words were seaworthy” or as I scroll through his photos he had the look of someone who peeled his rib cage back to let me see his beating heart. I get the sentiment but that just sounds gross and as far as his words were seaworthy I get it again but they had way better examples in the book that I am not going back to find. Not only that I thought this book went on way too long and there was so much she didn’t tell James the hot guy who no one spoke to… Because that’s believable. It was just a lot in this book I didn’t have time to spend that much belief it really makes me sad but I don’t like a book because I know authors spin months and sometimes even longer trying to cultivate the best book to offer the readers but I just didn’t get on with this book and I’m sure some people will but I was just not one of them. I do want to say I was all Lynn for the first 40 or 50% and as I said I did find her descriptors strange but could’ve dealt with that had it stayed interesting it just became way too long but I digress you may love it. I want to thank flat iron books and NetGalley for my free arc copy please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.

I am too old to be reading this book. The writing felt super young and cringy. I didn’t enjoy this. If the characters weren’t so immature, I would’ve liked this book more.

The Bad Ones was a curled snarl of a book, soaked with rage and consumed with vengeance.

It was a stunning, shiver-inducing supernatural mystery. Albert just has such a gift for creating atmosphere that sinks its hooks into you and will not let go. From the very first page, I was completely under the spell of this book. It is a pacy, suspenseful read with plenty of twists and turns to uncover. The central mystery thread is so well executed and ties into the wider theme of rage and retribution. Albert asks what lengths would you go to in order to exact justice and reclaim a power stolen from you? This is particularly prevalent through the lens of feminine rage and the motifs of abuse, specifically within power dynamics and relationships. It is dark, unrelenting and spellbinding. I delight in stories like this that pulsate with a deep seated thirst for revenge and a twisted sense of retribution. Albert ensures this is challenged, but left morally murky and ambiguous. Every action has consequences, even if you are unaware of the darkness of those consequences and what they may cost the justice seeker themselves.

Albert also thrives in that blurry boundary between fantasy and reality. This book delights in the liminal spaces and the creative power of stories to transcend these spaces and become something more. They are both a belief system and a way to grapple with trauma, evolving into something potentially more sinister. I also loved how they epitomised the somewhat toxic relationship between Nora and Becca, laced with secrets and suspicions that cloud the judgement of everyone involved. They are both three-dimensional, flawed and messy characters that have their own problems to deal with and relationships that begin to emerge. Their narrative shows the progression from childhood to adulthood, but also the limitations of background and perceptions of outsiders. It challenges you to think beyond the norm and indulge in the childhood imaginations, which may have morphed into something else entirely.;

The Bad Ones is a captivating, sinister and deeply angry book that also delights in complex characters and the ambiguities of creativity.

This book is a perfect mix of both fantasy and thriller. Albert does an amazing job at providing just enough information to keep the reader hooked, while also second guessing their theories. There were times where even reading some scenes in the dark would give me goosebumps.

I really enjoyed how everything progressed and was woven together. The jumping back and forth from time or person was never confusing and helped the story along rather than hinder it and jumble the readers' place. Wonderful job at making sure this was done efficiently and without unnecessary plot lines.

My only critique was the speed of the resolution. The beginning of the book was so nicely spaced, but the every last chapter felt a little rushed. I would've gladly read more pages of Becca's side of the story! Perhaps maybe even a book 2?

“I didn’t know how to help her as she shrunk her life, shrunk herself…”

“The Bad Ones” by Melissa Albert

When three people go missing one winter night the town is thrown into suspicion by everyone. Nora’s ex-best friend is one of the missing. Nora is on the hunt to find Becca and save her with the clues Becca has left. When reality and fantasy mix Nora wonders if the mystery is linked with the Goddess of Forgotten, a childhood game the girls used to play together.

This book was amazing. The entire book I was mentally trying to figure out how much is supernatural or just grief and mental illness. The writing was very poetic and fantastical in terms of descriptions. The world that was built gave me a hazy feeling like I was recalling a distant memory, which was so perfect. 5 out of 5 stars, so mesmerizing.

“Those are the memories I can bear to handle.”

My obsession with girlhood continues with this YA supernatural horror that blurs the line between reality and fantasy. While it was YA it didn’t read that way. Alberts writing gets to the root of the emotions you experience when navigating the the on ramp to adulthood. When your problems suddenly get very real but you still have to make it to homeroom on time. She so perfectly articulates the imagination attached to being a young girl, the land of make believe and imagination but also of revenge and twisted games. This was also the first time I saw the delicate complexities of a friendship breakup so accurately portrayed. I will say that while the resolution fell flat for me it didn’t take away from my overall enjoyment of the story.

The Bad Ones is funny and fresh and so captivating. I feel so lucky to have gotten to read this early, I couldn’t put it down. This is the perfect book to get a young girl hooked on reading

Can I give this six stars? Because I would. Albert successfully captures the darkness and the light, the pain and the joy of friendship and play, and then submerges it all in a riveting horror thriller ride with an awesome cast of characters and a mythos all its own. This book encompasses so many things I love. The way Albert puts the weight of the tale on the intense and complicated friendship between two girls makes it cut deep for me. And the way friendship, and the act of play and storytelling within that friendship, is infused with a powerful and transformative magic mirrors parts of my own experience in ways that are both profound and sentimental.

I’m always delighted to see an author who is truly a gifted writer choose to write Young adult fiction m, or fantasy, or mysteries instead of Literary Fiction, a genre with no shortage of quality writing.

I expect Melissa Albert’s work attracts a lot of plot readers at least initially, but I hope her skill as a writer eventually becomes something readers notice and appreciate as they delve into her work.

I love the Hazel Wood books, and was sadly less enamored of Our Crooked Hearts, which was of course well written but less appealing in terms of plot.

So I’m thrilled to see a return to form here from Albert, who has written a terrifically original, well-plotted, and gorgeously written dark fantasy for the YA audience.

Typically gods don’t make great foes in fiction for a number of reasons, but Albert has used that concept exceptionally well, and written a story equal parts creepy and resonant. I loved the characters and the writing, as well as the unsettling, evocatively macabre atmosphere.

An auto-read author if there ever was one, I can’t wait to see what Albert gives us next.